Faith and Works

When Deeds Are Absent, Our Faith Is Dead

"...if we are ashamed to imitate our Lord's sufferings, which He endured for us, and to suffer as He suffered, it is obvious that we shall not become partakers with Him in His glory. If that is true of us we shall be believers in word only, not in deed. When deeds are absent, our faith is dead." -- St. Symeon the New Theologian

Doctrine and Works Acceptable to God

"True religion consists of these two elements: pious doctrines and virtuous actions. Neither does God accept doctrines apart from works, nor are works, when divorced from godly doctrine, accepted by God.... The knowledge of doctrines is a precious possession. There is need of a vigilant soul, since there are many who would deceive you by philosophy and vain deceit." -- St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lectures 4.2.1

Is Faith Alone Sufficient?

"Shall we say that faith, bare and alone, is sufficient for one to attain the fellowship that is from above? Will even the band of demons rise up to fellowship with God, since they acknowledge God's unity and have believed that God exists? How could this be? For the mere knowledge that the one God is the creator and producer of all things is useless. But I think it necessary that the confession of piety toward God should accompany faith. For one who does this, abides in Christ, and will be seen to possess His words, according to the text in the book of Psalms, 'I have laid up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.'" -- St. Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on the Gospel of John 10:2

Faith Without Works Is Dead Because Even the Demons Believe in God

"Unbelievers, those who believe with difficulty, or believe in part, are those who do not show their faith through works. Apart from works the demons also believe (Jms. 2:19) and confess Christ to be God and Master. 'We know who you are' (Mk. 1:24), they say, 'You are the Son of God' (Lk. 8:28), and elsewhere, 'These men are servants of the Most High God' (Acts 16:17). Yet such faith will not benefit the demons, nor even humans. This faith is of no use, for it is dead..." -- St. Symeon the New Theologian

Bede on Faith and Works

"Although the apostle Paul preached that we are justified by faith without works, those who understand by this that it does not matter whether they live evil lives or do wicked and terrible things, as long as they believe in Christ, because salvation is through faith, have made a great mistake. James here expounds how Paul's words ought to be understood. This is why he uses the example of Abraham, whom Paul also used as an example of faith, to show that the patriarch also performed good works in the light of his faith. It is therefore wrong to interpret Paul in such a way as to suggest that it did not matter whether Abraham put his faith into practice or not. What Paul meant was that no one obtains the gift of justification on the basis of merit derived from works performed beforehand, because the gift of justification comes only from faith." -- Venerable Bede, Concerning The Epistle of St. James

Maximus the Confessor on Faith and Works

"As the memory of fire does not warm the body, so faith without love does not bring about the illumination of knowledge in the soul. Do not say, as the divine Jeremiah tells us, that you are the Lord's temple. And do not say that 'mere faith in our Lord Jesus Christ can save me.' For this is impossible unless you acquire love for Him through works. For in what concerns mere believing, 'even the devils believe and tremble.' Indeed, as the Scripture has it, 'faith without works is dead'. Now no reasonable person would ever presume to say that anything dead or without activity should be counted among the finer things." -- St. Maximus the Confessor, ca. 580-662

The Foolish Virgins

"It is pointless for someone to say that he has faith in God if he does not have the works which go with faith. What benefit were their lamps to the foolish virgins who had no oil (Mt. 25:1-13), namely, deeds of love and compassion?" -- St. Gregory Palamas

Give Cheerfully

" Cheerfulness consists in not regarding things as our own, but as entrusted to us by God for the benefit of our fellow servants. It consists in scattering them abroad generously with joy and magnanimity, not reluctantly or under compulsion." -- St Symeon the New Theologian

Orthodox vs Protestant views

"Our differences lie in that our Protestant friends - at least many of them - seem to make a sharp distinction between justification and sanctification. So they apply the idea of salvation to justification. So, you are justified by grace through faith, then follows sanctification through works. We, as Orthodox, would agree with this - justification by faith - but we would insist that there is also future judgment by works. In other words: of course, salvation is by grace. The essential connection to Christ - what God offers through Christ - is by faith. We have no [meritorious] works. We are sinners. But once we connect with Christ, we have the challenge of living in Christ and doing works of mercy, and so on, and so forth, our whole life. And at the end, we are judged, as scripture says that we are. You have, for example, 2 Corinthians 5:10: ...we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ. That each one may receive good or evil according to what he has done in the body...." - Fr. James Bernstein, Illumined Heart Podcast

The following lines from St. Macarius can be interpreted by Protestants as "works religion", but in fact it teaches the opposite: that we labor out of love, without any expectation of recompense.

"The soul that really loves God and Christ, though it may do ten thousand righteousnesses, esteems itself as having wrought nothing, by reason of its insatiable aspiration after God. Though it should exhaust the body with fastings, with watchings, its attitude towards the virtues is as if it had not yet even begun to labour for them." -- St Macarius the Great

We are saved by grace, through faith, to do good works

For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so that no one can boast. For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we may do them. - Eph 2:8-10

"Even so, every good tree produces good fruit;" - Mt 7:17

"For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead." -- James 2:26

"As the memory of fire does not warm the body, so faith without love does not bring about the illumination of knowledge in the soul. Do not say, as the divine Jeremiah tells us, that you are the Lord's temple. And do not say that 'mere faith in our Lord Jesus Christ can save me.' For this is impossible unless you acquire love for Him through works. For in what concerns mere believing, 'even the devils believe and tremble.' Indeed, as the Scripture has it, 'faith without works is dead'. Now no reasonable person would ever presume to say that anything dead or without activity should be counted among the finer things." -- St. Maximos the Confessor ca. 580-662

"It is pointless for someone to say that he has faith in God if he does not have the works which go with faith. What benefit were their lamps to the foolish virgins who had no oil (Mt. 25:1-13), namely, deeds of love and compassion?" -- St. Gregory Palamas

"God's mission was not to save people in order that they may remain barren or inert. For Scripture says that faith has saved us. Put better: Since God willed it, faith has saved us. Now in what case, tell me, does faith save without itself doing anything at all? Faith's workings themselves are a gift of God, lest anyone should boast. What then is Paul saying? Not that God has forbidden works but that he has forbidden us to be justified by works. No one, Paul says, is justified by works, precisely in order that the grace and benevolence of God may become apparent!" -- St. Chrysostom, Homily on Ephesians 4.2.9

"However much human weakness may strive, it cannot come up to the future reward, nor by its efforts so take off from Divine grace that it should not remain a free gift. And therefore St. Paul bears witness that he had obtained the grade of the Apostolate by the grace of God, saying: 'By the grace of God I am what I am.' Yet also that he had responded to Divine grace, where he says: 'And His Grace in me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all: and yet not I, but the Grace of God with me' (I Cor. 15:10). For when he says: 'I labored,' he shows the effort of his own will; when he says: 'yet not I, but the Grace of God,' he points out the value of Divine protection; when he says: 'with me,' he affirms that it co-operates with him when he was not idle or careless, but working and making effort." -- St. John Cassian

"The remission of sins, therefore, is granted alike to all through baptism: but the grace of the Spirit is proportional to the faith and previous purification. Now, indeed, we receive the firstfruits of the Holy Spirit through baptism, and the second birth is for us the beginning and seal and security and illuminations of another life. It behooves as, then, with all our strength to steadfastly keep ourselves pure from filthy works, that we may not, like the dog returning to his vomit, make ourselves again the slaves of sin. For faith apart from works is dead, and so likewise are works apart from faith. For the true faith is attested by works." -- St. John Damascene, Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, 9

Not Words Only, but also Works

"We do not need words only, for, at the present time, there are many words among men, but we need works, for this is what is required, not words which do not bear fruit." -- Abba James

Work out your own salvation, knowing that God is working within you

So then, my dear friends, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence but even more in my absence, continue working out your salvation with awe and reverence, for the one bringing forth in you both the desire and the effort – for the sake of his good pleasure – is God. - 2 Phillipians 2:12,13

Condemned By Works, But Not Saved By Them

"In fundamentalist Protestantism, while they declare that man is saved by faith without works, you can be tortured in hell for all eternity even if you have faith, if there is something amiss about your works." -- Archbishop Lazar Puhalo, All Saints Monastery YouTube broadcast, October 17, 2008.

God's Indebtedness to the Merciful (Giving)

"He who has compassion on the poor lends to God and He will repay Him for his good deed" (Proverbs 19:17).

"The poor man who begs and the rich man who gives both are indebting the Lord, but only under the condition that the poor man begs in the name of the Lord with humility and that the rich man gives in the name of the Lord with compassion. Everyone who receives should know that he receives that which belongs to God and everyone who gives should know that he gives that which belongs to God. Such giving has a price and such receiving has a price. All of us enter this world naked and naked shall we leave this world. All of us are beggars before the Lord for we possess nothing that we have not received from the Lord. Therefore, give to the poor man as God has given to you. You take what is another's and you give to your own when you perform charity. The poor man is closer to you than all of your goods, even as to God, the Creator of men, every man is incomparably more precious than all of his goods.

"If you have been given riches, it was given to you for temptation: that your heart be tempted! That God and all the heavenly hosts see whether you understood from whom are all your riches and why they were given to you. Blessed are you if you know that your goods are from God and belong to God! Blessed are you if you consider the poor as your companions, among your family members and share with them from that which God has entrusted to you!

"O how immeasurable is God's love for mankind! Behold, all that you have belongs to God but, nevertheless, God considers Himself your debtor if you take from Him and give to the poor and He will repay you for your good. What kind of mercy can be compared to this!

"O Man-loving Lord, open our minds to understand the mystery of Your mercy and soften our hearts as wax, that as wax they burn and shine with the reflection of Your inexpressible mercy! To You be glory and thanks always. Amen." - St. Nikolai Velimirovich

However, Be Mindful That Works Alone Are Nothing

"Acts of charity, almsgiving and all the external good works do not suppress the arrogance of the heart; but noetic meditation, the labor of repentance, contrition and humility -- these humble the proud mind." -- Elder Joseph the Hesychast

Sowing the Seeds

"And how do you go about converting someone? It is like the seeds sown by farmers. They are sown once, but they do not survive forever unless they are carefully nurtured. And unless the tillers of the soil protect the seeds, they will be exposed to the birds and to every seed-eating creature. We are just like this, unless we protect what has been sown in us by constant care, for the devil will snatch it away and our own lethargy will destroy it. The sun dries it up, the rain drowns it, and weeds choke it, so that it is not enough for the sower to pass by once only. Rather he must tend it often, driving away the birds of the air, pulling up the weeds and filling up the rocky places with much soil. He must prevent, block off and eject any form of destruction. Where soil is concerned, everything depends on the farmer, for without him it remains lifeless, ready only to suffer harm. It is not like that with spiritual soil, however. For in spiritual matters it is not all up to the teachers; at least half the effort must come from the pupils. It is up to us the teachers to sow the seed but up to you the pupils to do the rest." -- St. Chrysostom Catena

See Also

• Justification
• Salvation
• Believe and Behave